Our Books and Sets Service

Our Bookseller no longer regularly brings books to tournaments, owing to other Go duties, but will help anyone who wishes to place a bulk order to achieve best prices. This particularly applies to outreach initiatives.

Schools, new clubs and exhibition organisers are welcome to contact our Bookseller and discuss requirements. Sale or return terms are possible.

Sets

Go playing sets vary widely in quality. You can get beginner sets under £10, a full-size set with glass stones and wooden board for under £50 or you can spend £1,000 or more. Some sets have mat or wooden boards of various sizes (9, 13 or 19 lines) and plastic or glass stones. There are also magnetic sets for use when travelling.

Don't forget if you're a novice that it is best to start playing on smaller boards before moving up to the large 19x19 one. Some boards have a different size version on the reverse, helping you through this progression without the expense of buying another board.

As an alternative to purchasing a set you could make your own. Making stones can be a difficult, so we'd definitely recommend buying them; printing your own 9x9 or 13x13 board is much easier. You might to looks at the board of the BGA-designed A3 laminated BGA Takeaway Go Set.

Note on Buying Boards and Stones

If buying stones and boards from differing sources, be careful to check sizes as some slightly larger Chinese stones do not quite fit onto the Japanese-standard boards which are the norm in the UK.

Books

A vast number of Go books are available for study, with more than 200 in English.
There are books on many subjects from the opening, through tesuji and middle game, to the end game, and also books that analyse complete games by professionals and other strong players.
The level of material ranges from beginner level, through intermediate to advanced (for dan players).

We have a list of beginners' books and of these the most thorough book is Teach Yourself Go by Charles Matthews of the Cambridge Go Club, but others are available
including the large format Learn Go, written and published by Neil Moffatt of Cardiff Go Club.

There has been five main publishers of Go books (some of whom also supply Go sets and books/equipment for other Oriental games):

Kiseido: Original English-language instructional material, including the quarterly Go World magazine (ceased publication in 2012). Kiseido took over from the former Ishi Press.

Slate and Shell: A growing catalogue of translated and original works, some especially for newer players.

Yutopian: Up to 2010 published many translations of Asian Go classics for all levels of play.

Hinoki

Hinoki: Up to 2014 published translations of Asian advanced study Go books (now published by Go Game Guru)

Oromedia

Oromedia: Up to 2013 published Korean Go books, often bilingual (now stocked by Go Game Guru).

Other smaller publishers and authors also publish Go books.
Robert Jasiek is one author with an increasing number of titles.

Go Game Guru is one that supplies by mail-order a range of books, including those formerly published by Hinoki Press and Oromedia, and equipment, however they are in the process of ceasing this service. In addition their website includes news, problems and information about the world of Go.